What’s Going on With Nick Dunlap?

👋 {{readername | Hey, golf fans}},

He was once a promising youngster. He won his first Tour title at 20. He won the second just months later. Now, he is struggling. No, we are not talking about Jordan Spieth, Max Homa, or Rickie Fowler. We are talking about the 22-year-old Nick Dunlap. We will also talk about Charley Hull’s perfect round, Brian Rolapp’s update on the merger with LIV Golf, and a bit more.

Let’s get swinging…

They say it’s impossible to guess how the future will turn out. In Nick Dunlap’s (+13/MC) case, we might have to agree. Dunlap won his first PGA Tour title just a month after turning 20. He was still an amateur. He has two wins on the PGA Tour. He’s only 22. But now, Dunlap is barely surviving the cuts. Really, what has happened to the standout golfer?

Exhibit A: Take a close look at three consecutive holes here. Did you see the quintuple bogey nine? Those are driver troubles.

At 22, Dunlap has time on his side. He has the talent and the patience too. But he sits second-to-last in SG: Off-the-Tee this season. At the Wyndham Championship, driving cost him seven strokes. Dunlap is playing from places where Jordan Spieth doesn’t dare traverse.

How long will this take to fix?

Let’s look at exhibit B: His SG: OTT numbers have been in the red since 2024. Two years ago at this same course, he drove the ball so far away that it went past the lake to the right of the hole. At the 2025 Masters, he shot a first-round 90. This season, he played in 17 events and made the cut in only seven.

It’s not like the young chap doesn’t know how to rebound. Remember when he hit this ugly shank before he won the American Express? He has got it. Still, it’s tough to watch a promising player struggle in a season with five winners under 24.

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Exceeding expectations: Charley Hull (-10/2nd) knows how to get the crowd going. Watch her cheer on a young girl as she keeps hitting drive after drive on the range. Hull capped the day with a bogey-free 62 at the PIF London Championship, eclipsing Georgia Hall’s 2021 course record. Hull now sits just one behind Anna Huang (-11/1st). The cherry on top was that her nephews were present, although kids hardly come without a wee bit of trouble. Here is Charley explaining why she had to back off from her stance.

Clarity: After LIV CEO Scott O’Neil’s announcement at Bedminster, PGA Tour chief Brian Rolapp was asked about the possibility of seeing the two worlds coming together. The world had its eye on it, especially after an it-feels-like-eons delay. Here is what Brian Rolapp said about the possibility of a merger between the Tour and LIV Golf.

All hell broke loose. Take a look at this—is it even possible to play on a course like this? The USGA felt the same and, for a third straight day, halted play at the U.S. Women’s Amateur. Heavy rain battered the course, and a lightning strike caused tree damage. Play will restart Saturday at 7 a.m.

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Last Poll Result: 78.11% of you said a winless season could still be considered a successful one.

Golf is a wonderful sport, and we all can agree on that. But what if it were filled with foolish and downright preposterous rules that don’t make sense? Like, for example, hitting a sand wedge every time you're in a bunker. You want to use another club? Sure, go ahead, but add one stroke penalty. One person actually believed that was the rule, as you’ll see here.

But how about fake dumb rules made on the spot? Blame your club after a poor shot? You must use it again immediately. Someone walks across your putting line? You’re allowed to move your ball one club length closer to the hole where they stepped. Infuriating, absurd enough to cause a revolt.

We found a more bizarre collection of these ideas in this Reddit thread. Before you click, make sure you’re cool-headed.

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